ANTHRAX AMONG THE LIVING
Combining the literary influence of horror legend Stephen King with the ultra-groovy, ultra-speedy, and ultra-heavy thrash metal wizardry of ANTHRAX could only result in one possible (yet ever so glorious) outcome: the 1987 masterpiece, AMONG THE LIVING.
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The album is so mind blowing & perfect that had it been released in 1986, all other forms of “lesser” music (aka: everything NOT thrash) would have been immediately deleted and erased from all of existence (and from all multiverses) and The Big 4 would have reigned for a thousand years in peace, unity, and metal.
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Released March 22, 1987
Recorded October–December 1986
Label Megaforce, Island
Side 1
1. "Among the Living"
2. "Caught in a Mosh"
3. "I Am the Law"
4. "Efilnikufesin (N.F.L.)"
5. "A Skeleton in the Closet"
Side 2
6. "Indians"
7. "One World"
8. "A.D.I./Horror of It All"
9. "Imitation of Life"
Anthrax
Joey Belladonna – lead vocals
Dan Spitz – lead guitar, acoustic guitar on "A.D.I.", backing vocals
Scott Ian – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Frank Bello – bass, backing vocals
Charlie Benante – drums
It's time to “juxtapose and accentuate” the “sound of summer” as we contemplate “mosh parts vs breakdowns”, hypothesize whether or not “boner pills would work as nipple pills” while simultaneously imagining “bald beavers and shaved tang” on spring break. “C’mon man” don’t be a “nincompoop” and JOIN US for a dive into ANTHRAX’s masterwork: AMONG THE LIVING!!!
AMONG THE LIVING:
The swirling intro before everyone comes in has this weird, uneasy feeling like something is about to explode. That same tension is amplified when the whole band comes in, like in A.I.R. where it starts off and you think “okay, nice groove” …until…BAM!!! Buckle up, please put your tray tables in the upright position and hang onto your ass!!! 35 years on, this is still one of the most killer openers on any thrash album EVER!!! That heavy “mosh part” part is so fucking badass…and shows such a tremendous juxtaposition between the mega-fast, super speedy parts and the ultra-heavy “mosh part” parts.
One of the greatest things about thrash in the 80’s was that there was usually, almost always (not always always, but almost always) a completely different riff for the guitar solo section, so it’s like getting even MORE fantastical riffs on top of the already unbefuckinglievable riffs you’ve already heard. Whenever we do a killer openers episode, you can bet your headbanging butt cheeks that this one will be “AMONG” the songs that are included!
“Man, fights Man, divided they can’t stand. United they can battle back and make him force his hand…”
CAUGHT IN A MOSH:
Even though the chords in the intro section are pretty straightforward (it’s literally 2 chords), they just sound crushingly heavy. And then Frank Bello comes charging in with that bass and the speed picks up, along with the groove.
And then…CHARLIE!!!
YES!!! Fastness!!! How amazing that a band can easily move in and out of mid-tempo grooves and ultra-fast, thrash-tactical warp speed. Those NYC style “gang vocals” are a nice contrast to Joey’s clean singing; again, a lovely juxtaposition of the two distinctive styles of singing in Anthrax. Which is why we occasionally (lovingly) refer to those five guys as REO-Anthrax-Wagon.
“Don’t tell me how to do my job, there’s the door, your name’s on the knob…”
I AM THE LAW:
This one automatically starts off heavy. You can just feel it…that opening riff…and then the riff after the opening riff with the drums and the bass and…well, the balls. There’s such an abundance of balls in the riffs of this song that it could’ve just as easily been called “I am the BALLS!” Don’t fuck around in Mega City, although we could certainly use a real-life Judge Dredd in this world to help clean things up and permanently “take out the trash,” so to speak.
And then…SCOTT!!
More fastness!!! YES!!! (*Insert Beavis & Butthead saying “Yes” here! *). Certainly, a change of gears from the plodding heaviness of the riffs leading up to the shreddery of Dan Spitz. Oh yeah, lettuce not forget that Anthrax recently celebrated their 41st anniversary as a band!!! So, someone please go make them a Judge Dredd birthday/anniversary cake.
“He keeps the peace with his law-giver, judge, jury, and executioner…”
N.F.L. (EFILNIKUFESIN):
Nope, not a song about the National Football League…actually, it’s WAY cooler than football! Sounds like this one is dedicated to those who become slaves to their addictions & vices and fail to live out their lives in a meaningful, productive way. (Please note that Metal Nerdery encourages “responsible” relaxer usage…preferably the kind of relaxers that are natural and found naturally in nature).
Also, lettuce take a moment to address just how incredibly underrated Frank Bello and Dan Spitz are to the band’s overall sound. Anthrax would NOT be Anthrax without those guys (and Joey, and Scott, and of course, Charlie).
“Too bad things weren’t different, who knows what he’d have done…”
A SKELETON IN THE CLOSET:
Bring on more Stephen King influences. Listen to all of that double-bass going on during the verse; that Charlie is a machine! And let’s be honest, Frank Bello is the Geezer Butler of thrash metal; there’s a LOT going on in the low end (mark the time) and his bass lines have loads more complexity than many of his peers in metal; particularly that killer walk-down going into the solo. Nice little “death metal” style flourish there near the end, right after the guitar solo before going back into the main verse riff. Ahhh, it's like Zen…only more metal.
“Apt pupil, he hears the screams, nightmares turn into wet dreams…”
INDIANS:
Ahh I can remember it like it was yesterday: MTV’s Headbanger’s Ball and the video for this song (back before “Music Television” ditched the music, which would be just as ludicrous and absurd as KFC no longer serving fried chicken. C’mon man…). This was the first Anthrax I’d really heard and definitely the first Anthrax I’d ever seen. It’s fantastic the way that they start off slow and heavy, and then speed up, and then go back to grooving again. It could be argued that Anthrax might’ve been one of the first of The Big 4 to really incorporate copious amounts of groove into their sound.
And then…”WAR DANCE!!!”.
“Prejudice, something we all can do without, the flag of many colors is what this land’s all about…”
ONE WORLD:
Of all the songs on this album, this sounds like it could have been on Spreading the Disease (at least the intro…don’t ask, it’s just a vibe). If you listen to the remastered version through headphones, you can hear additional harmonies in the background (near the beginning of the song) that you may not have noticed before. There’s certainly hints of S.O.D. right before the solo section. Just realized that Dan Spitz’ phrasing has a bit of Randy Rhoads-ness to it.
A song about taking care of our world and living in peace instead of embracing fuckery, division, wars, and plunder (you know, just like governments and bureaucrats do: with total and complete immunity and impunity and absolutely ZERO accountability).
“What kind of sentence would you serve for killing the earth?”
A.D.I./HORROR OF IT ALL
Definitely a haunting soft intro, evoking the feeling of being in a bleak, lonely ghost town, all alone, somewhere out West. A song dedicated to the untimely & tragic passing of Metallica bassist Cliff Burton (R.I.P.), with whom the band were not only friends but also tourmates. Death touches us all, and as we age it becomes an increasingly more common and, sadly, more “expected” part of life. But when it happens to someone in their youth, it’s bound to stir up an onslaught of inconsolable grief and a flood of emotions. Read those lyrics. Anyone who’s experienced tragic, unexpected loss can certainly relate.
“I know that there’s no answer, I mean what did I expect? So many unanswered questions, I can’t believe, I can’t accept…”
IMITATION OF LIFE:
Such a perfectly appropriate song for all the plastic fakeness in the world. Definitely a killer closer, and perhaps one of the fastest songs on the record.
Read those lyrics (“Let’s do lunch, babe…”). Be REAL, don’t be fake! Because nobody likes FAKE. There’s so much fake, plastic, fuckedness in the world that encountering anything and anyone even remotely real is like a cool drink of water after cooking to death out in the desert.
(*Fun fact: there’s a version of S.O.D.’s “Aren’t You Hungry” containing the exact same riffs, which is fine considering that 3 of the 4 members of S.O.D. are also members of Anthrax. *+*)
“Did you ever think for yourself? Just once, did you ever think? That’s all I want to know…”
*+*Okay, so 2 of the 3 above referenced members of S.O.D. are still in Anthrax, with the exception of Dan Lilker, who was in Anthrax (prior to Frank Bello) on the first album. Hell, going forward, let’s just call S.O.D. Anthrax. Or we could call Anthrax S.O.D. It’s still the same band, right? It’s fine. *+*
Show Notes:
(00:01): Some…BODY!!! (#stfu) #kidsgettinghurt (*check ‘em out on #instagram*) and a brief segment of #RussellsReflections regarding #parasailing / #hestarted and #hefinished (Let’s be rill: #children are more often than not #onehundredpercent #theparentsfault) / #spaghetti / #nothingbutyeah and a #HetfieldMedley / WELCOME BACK TO THE METAL NERDERY PODCAST!!! #thisepisodesclinkyoftheepisode #DeadMansFingersRum #reverbagag and our #petfly / And now, it’s time for #thisepisodesbeeroftheepisode #PontoonBrewing from #SandySprings #puckerupbuttercup #Gose (not #Zeul) #Margs #sixpercentabv (“Bald beaver and shaved tang”) / #ohboi (“That’s tart!”) #onmicburp / #TheAxeBodySprayOfPodcasts or #TheAxePomadeOfPodcasts / #beardenvy (#STFU, you’ve still got a full head of hair) / #ZZTopBalls (“Upstairs beard vs downstairs beard”) / LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL AT 980-666-8182!!! #TheVoiceMailSegment #Willy (We’ll have to go back and review our song logs to confirm that we did in fact play us some #TexasKetamine) #rockon #thankyouforthat / We could sell the fuck out of some #bonerpills / “Not drinking can be good for you” / #thisepisodesshroomsoftheepisode #thisepisodespeyoteoftheepisode / WE’LL PLAY YOUR SHIT-ah!!!
#tentacleoverload #dontdenythepowerof #miraculoustentacles / ***Don’t be afraid of the #aliens when they get here because they will be #multitentacledbeings*** / #TheEmailSegment You can email us at metalnerdery@gmail.com / Check out #Bloodsimple DEAD MAN WALKING #overtenmillionstreams on #Spotify #muchlybigly #justballs / #humitbetter / #preproducedJingle and an explanation from #Laryngitis / #itsfunnycositstrue
(18:56): #knockknock and now… The Docket: ANTHRAX: Among the Living and waxing #nostalgic: #Anthrax turns 41 this year!!! / #bolth #cmonman #snortlaugh #onegoodthing #nincompoop (not to be confused with #Nickelback in terms of “N” words) / “Let’s talk for a moment about #massmurderers and #hypocrisy and #conspiracytheories” / “People who do bad things but are really talented at something”/ A conspiracy regarding the end of the #counterculture of the late 60’s and #CharlesManson / “Repurpose horrific things to be positive” / #Wormwood and #Absinthe (“Like #Jager but worse…”) / #terriblename / #blackdoglovin / #Butternuts #Anthrax #WarDance #PaleAle / #imjusttellinya #noteven
(31:46): “Among the Living is a #summeralbum for some of us / #ohforfuckssake #nope #BlackAlbumReference / “First impressions of #AmongTheLiving “/ Anthrax’s #MOP album / I would like to… / The sound of impending #thrashballs / “Coming to the #sidestage…” / “Frank Bello is the #GeezerButler of #80sThrashMetal” / #thepoltergeistdude / “Based on Stephen King’s ‘The Stand’”… / #justreadit / Absurd size comparisons (#giants vs #dwarves) #Twins
(40:24): #killeropener #penniesandpiss AMONG THE LIVING (the #inventors of #djent?) / “The #Journey of #thrashmetal” aka #ReoAnthraxWagon / “A singer is always a vocalist, but a vocalist isn’t always a singer” / #powermetalthrash and #toursupport for #KISS / #newimpression “This is what I think I sound like” / CAUGHT IN A MOSH #happynoise #theidiotconvention / #juxtapose or #accentuate (“The #gangvocals really juxtapose and accentuate Joey’s vocals”)
(50:32): I AM THE LAW #marshallballs and an absolutely #tremendous bass sound (“1982 #Marshall #JCM800”) / “You won’t fuck around no more…” / That fast part in the middle… #thrashperfection / The #genetics and #musicalgenius of the guys in Anthrax are #offthecharts / #thisepisodesensureoftheepisode / “I could care less about the #NationalFootballLeague…” EFILNIKUFESIN (N.F.L.) #noleglicking #nopenniesorpiss / “A different brand of thrash…making the #evil #fun” / “Did anyone see #TheHeadbangersBall tour?” back in the day?” / The #springbreak of thrash, lots of #fuun
(1:01:18): “A new technique…” / A SKELETON IN THE CLOSET (wait for the killer bass walk down before the guitar solo…#genius) / #AptPupil (Yet another #StephenKingReference) and a #sickbassriff #killercloser for #sideone / And now… the #killeropener of #sidetwo INDIANS (WARDANCE!!!!) / #hugenips (full #bald or #braidedpubes?) / ONE WORLD (#usethoseheadphones to better hear the extra #harmonies in the background at the beginning) / #bonovision / “#Ignorance is no excuse for #violence” / “What would Among The Living sound like with #BillyMilano on the vocals?”
(1:12:47): Loads of #StephenKing #tangentionalality on the next one / A perfect #onmicburp according to the judges / A.D.I. / HORROR OF IT ALL (#InMemory of #CliffBurton #RIP) / There’s just so many riffs / #killercloser “My favorite part is…all of it” / IMITATION OF LIFE (*See also Aren’t You Hungry from S.O.D. “Bigger Than The Devil”*) / #readthoselyrics #fuckfakeness #gofast (“Let’s do lunch babe”)
(1:20:34): The difference between #thrashmetal and #speedmetal / “The #breakdown of today is the #moshpart of the 80’s” / “Now it officially feels like summer” / #futurealbumdives / Preparing to go see #StonedHenge #StonedMorose #FirstOneDies #BloodAndBrutality at #SweetwaterLive / #mexicanfooddeliciousness / Favorite track on the album & tracking order / THANK YOU FOR JOINING US AND CONTINUE TO SPREAD THE WORDERY ABOUT THE METAL NERDERY!!! / We’re on #YouTube also!!! Check out past episode clips via #MetalNerderyMunchies!!! / ***GO BUY OUR SHIT AT metalnerdery.com/merch / #untilthenext #theoutro and a horrible #jingle
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